B.R. burrito chain expanding across the state

Izzo’s Illegal Burrito is set to open its first locations outside of Baton Rouge over the next few months. The first franchise-owned restaurant will open in Metairie next week. A second franchise-owned location will open in Lake Charles in early June, a few weeks ahead of a company store in Lafayette. “That’s going to open up in mid-summer,” says Ozzie Fernandez, who co-owns Izzo’s. Fernandez says the chain has been trying to get into metro New Orleans and Lafayette for several years now. “We wanted to go into Orleans and Jefferson parishes ourselves, but we were approached by a great operating group,” he says. The Lafayette location will be on Johnston Street, two blocks from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette campus. “We wanted to set up one store close to campus, then expand our way in Lafayette,” Fernandez says. “We think that’s a three-store city.” Izzo’s has been open in Baton Rouge since 2001, first near LSU and then adding two more restaurants in the city. While there are no more Izzo’s in the works for Baton Rouge, Fernandez says he’s looking at opening locations in other Louisiana cities, including Denham Springs and Shreveport.—Timothy Boone